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  • 1.  Poster Design

    Posted 09-02-2017 17:35
    Curious about what everyone does for their poster designs. I found a couple of websites that sell templates for specific shows, but hoping there's more out there.


  • 2.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-03-2017 09:29
    I always find a student in our Media Arts department and discuss my vision for the the show and ask them to design it. It has been pretty successful as it allows our two departments to work together while helping build a small portfolio for the student.

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    Laura Beeman Nugent
    Theatre Teacher
    Loyola College Prep Troupe 6829
    Artistic Director
    Shreveport Little Theatre Academy
    Shreveport, LA
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-03-2017 11:35
    We host a school wide poster design contest with the winners getting gift certificates to a local coffee shop and tickets to the show. We try to use 3 designs for each production-- poster, flyer, and program art.

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    Michael Johnson
    Trinity NC
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-03-2017 13:45

    ​Students design ours through the marketing crew. There are always some very creative and artisitc students who can do a great job. 



     
     
    Amy Sando,
    Douglas High School Drama
    782-5136
     
    "Whether you think you can or can't, you're right!"   Henry Ford



    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-04-2017 11:56
    I have done it many ways through the years, including student-designs.  When I lost a drama mama years ago I accidentally found Vistaprint online.  OMG!  I am their best customer, but you have to have a budget for sure.  However, I NEVER order anything from Vistaprint until it on sale.  And they have sales ALL the time!  I get posters, postcards, post ITs, business cards, lawn signs, t-shirts, mugs, hats from them.  

    Just went into my Vistaprint account and into my "order history" and found that for the last show I ordered 100 11x17 posters for $80, and 2500 postcards for $157.00.  You don't have to be a graphic designer to be able to make your own posters.  There are SO many options they give you AND if you need help there's an 800 number (in Jamaica!) and they are very very helpful.  Also, they charge you $5+ if you need them to do an adjustment on something, such as turning a postcard to the left or making a logo transparent.

    They also have calendars that I make for Christmas presents.  It's the only thing that some of the folks in my family get, and they are upset if I forget to make them one.  I basically go through their FB pictures and find the best 13 shots I can.  Then I upload to them Vistaprint, write birthdays and special dates where I want, and then I wait.  I wait for a 50% sale and the calendars are generally $6 each!

    Cannot recommend Vistaprint more highly.  I have been using them for every show and every Christmas since 2013 and have turned many people onto them.  Check them out and see!  And good luck!  Vistaprint.com

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    Valerie O'Riordan
    Drama Director, MFA, AEA, Russi House Provincial
    Archbishop Riordan High School
    San Francisco CA voriordan@riordanhs.org
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    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-04-2017 21:01
    We're another student design school.  Sometimes we open it up school wide (we will for the current show), other times a specific student will come to me with an idea so I have them run with it, or I have a specific idea of what I want so I go to a kid I know can make it happen.  When we open it up and get many options, I narrow it down to the 5 or so that will work best and then take it to the cast and crew for voting.

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    Laura Steenson
    Theatre Director
    Reynolds High School
    Troutdale OR
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    Original Message


  • 7.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-05-2017 09:05
    Mostly I now design the posters myself.

    Some shows come with a template which is useful. The template for IN THE HEIGHTS is great and we used that last spring. The template for MEMPHIS, by the way, is not very useful so I had to go another way for our show this fall.

    If I get really stuck I will reach out to someone else. I have a parent who is a graphic designer and he is helping me out a little this year.

    I have had students design the posters  in the past but that process has always been disappointing so I gave it up. Mostly my problem was that they were resistant to changes. They weren't willing to make a second draft. It was all or nothing. Sometimes I will ask a student to create a specific piece of artwork to use as the basic design and I will lay in all the necessary information on top of it.

    I had a parent volunteer design posters for me for years. He started doing when his daughter was in school and kept doing it for many years afterward. I finally let him off the hook when I started doing them myself.

    It can be time consuming but satisfying. I like to do it in the summer when I  have more time but that means I need to know what my shows are by then.

    --
    Mark A. Zimmerman
    Theatre Director,

    Akron School for the Arts
    Firestone High School
    470 Castle Blvd
    Akron, Ohio 44313

    330-761-3275

    FirestoneTheatre.com




    Original Message


  • 8.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-05-2017 18:17
    It varies for us. Sometimes I have a very strong idea of what I'm looking for, but usually I open to the kids to design. It also allows the kid whose design I choose to put it into a portfolio (which is a nice addition for that kid). I've found that most of the time the kids are far more creative than I could ever be... and I tap into talent.

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    Shira Schwartz
    Chandler Unified School District
    Chandler AZ
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    Original Message


  • 9.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-05-2017 23:01
    Like some others have posted here, we collaborate with Digital Arts students who design posters, programs and tickets. I have developed a very positive relationship with the Department's teachers and we work closely with the students during the design process.

    I generally provide a strong, specific outline of the overall design concept. We like to have the poster reflect the artistic design of the show so usually use the same colour-scape and / or central image.

    Cheers,



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    Bill Jacobsen
    Drama Teacher / Curriculum Coordinator
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    Original Message


  • 10.  RE: Poster Design

    Posted 09-06-2017 13:04
    One of our troupe officer positions is Publicist.  That officer is in charge of making sure I have art for each show's poster and program by the deadline.  Some Publicists have done the black and white art themselves, or taken a photo, and some have found fellow students who are talented in drawing.  I discuss the themes of the show and potential images with the artist or photographer, who brings me a pencil sketch before inking it.  It usually takes 3 drafts for them to get a sketch that work work well, then they ink it.  I clean up stray marks in Photoshop, then embed the art into the program and poster.

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    C. J. Breland
    Asheville High School
    Asheville NC
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    Original Message


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